Kenneth Brian Fischer, 39, of the 800 block of Amherst Lane in Westminster, is facing charges in Virginia on four counts of solicitation of a minor in connection with an online chat investigation that began on Aug. 31 by the Fairfax County Police Major Crime Bureau, Child Exploitation Unit, according to a news release from Maryland State Police, which assisted in the investigation.

Kenneth Brian Fischer, 39, of the 800 block of Amherst Lane in Westminster, is facing charges in Virginia on four counts of solicitation of a minor in connection with an online chat investigation that began on Aug. 31 by the Fairfax County Police Major Crime Bureau, Child Exploitation Unit, according to a news release from Maryland State Police, which assisted in the investigation.

The attorney for the former Carroll County schools teacher federally indicted for a sexual offense involving a minor in February has filed for a detention hearing, set for Thursday afternoon, requesting his client be released into the custody of his father. In the request Kenneth Brian Fischer’s attorney, Michael Montemarano, cites concern over Fischer’s medical care while in custody.

Fischer, was indicted Feb. 22 on federal charges related to using a facility of interstate commerce to attempt to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity. Between Aug. 31 and Sept. 5 of last year, Fischer allegedly used electronic mail and text messaging to attempt to coerce a minor to meet him for sex, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office District of Maryland.

Montemarano, filed the request for scheduling — which asks that Fischer be released into the custody of his father, who lives in Sykesville — on Aug. 31, 2018, according to electronic court documents.

The home does not have an internet connection and his father would serve as a third party custodian, according to the documents.

Montemarano, in an interview with the Times, said the request is for a detention hearing, which his client had not previously requested and is entitled to under the Bail Reform Act. The hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. Thursday in the U.S. District Court in Baltimore.

Montemarano said while the medical issues are part of the reason for the request, that is not the sole reason.

“The conditions are only getting worse,” he said of Fischer’s housing situation at the Chesapeake Detention Facility in Baltimore.

This is the third location Fischer has been housed, Montemarano said, the first being in Carroll County and the second in Virginia.

“Issues relative to Mr. Fischer’s medical care have been bewilderingly delayed or overlooked, his property remains MIA, and Mr. Fischer now has acquired an infection in his surgical site. By contrast, if released on conditions Mr. Fischer can be treated through his own healthcare insurance. In addition, he is in the midst of divorce and custody/visitation proceedings in state court, which he would be able to address if on release,” Montemarano wrote in the request. “Mr. Fischer has no prior criminal justice system involvement, and there was no allegation of violence or weapons related in any way to the charges lodged against him.”

A motion for medical treatment was also filed on July 5 by Fischer’s legal counsel.

In that motion, Montemarano requests emergency medial attention for Fischer, after he broke his “right ankle badly in two places” on June 1. Surgery was deemed necessary within days, according to the motion, but it was not scheduled until June 15.

“He has had a plate and twelve screws inserted in his ankle, and is in a non-weight-bearing splint. At the point of his surgery, he was told the staples closing his incision in his ankle would need to be removed in about two weeks. As of today, they remain in and no indication has been given [to] Mr. Fischer when they will be removed,” Montemarano wrote in the motion.

Fischer’s legal counsel detailed other concerns in the July motion, including that: Fischer’s laundry had been done only twice in nearly six weeks; his cell had been cleaned three times in six weeks; and his sheets had been changed once in six weeks. Because of these issues, Montemarano said, Fischer developed a 2-inch abscess on the inside of his upper right thigh that went untreated for over a week, according to the motion.

Montemarano said in the motion that Fischer was denied access to his soap, toothpaste and other related items for over a week before being given an “indigent pack.” He had been told to pack his property to take it with him when transferred, but it was not brought to him, according to the motion.

Fischer has also been held in isolation, according to the motion.

“I am aware of no provision of the Bail Reform Act which operates to delimit my client’s right to safety and health as guaranteed by the Eighth Amendment. Frankly, the abdication of responsibility by the custodians of a disabled individual is shocking on its face,” Montemarano wrote in his motion.

Fischer was originally arrested Sept. 13, 2017, in Westminster as a fugitive from justice, then was extradited to Virginia and has been in custody ever since. He was originally suspended without pay by the Carroll County Board of Education, and the school board voted to terminate himon Sept. 25.

A detective posing as a 14-year-old boy was contacted by a stranger, later identified as Fischer, through a geo-social cellphone application. Fischer initiated a conversation with the detective and, soon after, solicited for sexual contact with the detective, who Fischer believed to be a juvenile. Fischer also sent sexually explicit images, presumably of himself, to the detective, according to law enforcement.

During the investigation, detectives identified Fischer as the person who made the contact online. When it was determined that Fischer lived in Maryland, detectives contacted the Maryland Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force for assistance with the investigation.

Through the investigation, detectives became aware of other possible victims in Northern Virginia and Maryland, according to Fairfax County police, and were asking the public to talk to their children and report any suspicious contact outside the school setting with Fischer. A tipline was also created.

Montemarano said Fischer’s Virginia charges, if not already dropped, will likely be dropped in favor of federal prosecution.